1. AVID Professional Learning
Socratic Seminar

2. Today’s Objectives Overview of Training Gage Level of Experience
Elements of a Socratic Seminar
Practice

3. Level of Experience With a partner discuss:
What form of classroom conversation do you currently use?
What level of experience do you have with Socratic Seminars?

4. What’s Your Why? Better active engagement of students.
Empowers students to take ownership of their learning.
Provides structure and personal accountability.
Challenges and affirms students knowledge and skills.
Student driven, minimal management.
Easily implemented and repeated.

5. Assessing Prior Knowledge: Stand, Share, Sit
Write down a question you have about Socratic Seminars on a sticky note.
Stand, Share, Sit
All group members stand.
Person who woke up earliest shares their question first.
After sharing, sit down.
Continue in a clockwise direction until all group members have shared.

6. Resources and Follow Up
All resources used or discussed today can be found on Aaron Mathews teacher website.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to either of us.
Aaron Mathews –
Scott Wakefield –

7. The 6 Steps of Socratic Seminar
Text Selection
Reading Strategies (R)
Establishing Principles (C)
Scaffolding Student Questions (W)(I)
Teaching Seminar Skills (I)(C)(O)
Debrief and Assess Seminar (W)(C)

8. Step 1 – Text/Media Selection
The definition of text can be very broad and is not limited to printed text in Socratic Seminars.
What kinds of texts could be used in Socratic Seminar from a variety of disciplines?
Popcorn out your answers.

9. Step 2 – Reading Strategies
Use at least three of the different Writing in the Margins strategies on the following slide and record your comments in the margin of your text.

10. the Margins
Writing in

11. Step 3 – Establishing Classroom Norms
With a partner discuss:
What are your classroom norms for group discussion?
What are some fears that you have about student behavior during discussion?

12. Step 3 – Establishing Classroom Norms
Build Classroom Culture
Disagree vs. Disrespect
Evidence Based Opinions
3 Before Me
Listen – Reflect – Respond

13. Step 3 – Example Principles
_____ is collaborative; multiple sides work toward shared understanding.
In _____, one listens to understand, to make meaning, and to find common ground.
Enlarges and possibly changes a participant’s point of view.
Creates an open-minded attitude and an openness to being wrong and change.
Expects that other people’s reflections will help improve understanding, rather than threaten it.
Calls for temporarily suspending one’s beliefs.
Searches for strengths in all positions.
Respects the other participants and seeks not to alienate or offend.
Assumes that many people have answers and that cooperation can lead to workable solutions.

14. Step 4 – Student Questions
Allow time for students to develop meaningful questions based on content provided.
High quality questions lead to high quality discussion and minimal lapses in conversation.

15. Costa’s Levels of Thinking3
Applying
(off the page)
evaluate generalize imagine judge
predict speculate if/then hypothesize 2
Processing
(between the lines)
compare contrast classify sort
distinguish explain why infer analyze 1
Gathering
(on the page)
complete define describe identify
list observe recite select

16. Step 5 – Teaching Socratic Seminar Skills
Guidelines
Listen No one can speak while someone else is speaking.
Build Speakers must try to build on what others say, not debate their views.
Refer to the text Speakers must refer directly to the section of the text from which their ideas come rather than making general comments or observations.

17. Step 6 – Debrief and Discuss
Reflection
Allow a few minutes to review their notes and write a summary that answers the Essential Question.
This could also be done as a warm up the following day.

18. Step 6 – Debrief and Discuss
Focused Note Summary
Grading/Assessment
Participation: Dominant students
Participation: Passive students
Quality of discussion

19. Practice Time!

20. The 6 Steps of Socratic Seminar
Text Selection
Reading Strategies (R)
Establishing Principles (C)
Scaffolding Student Questions (W)(I)
Teaching Seminar Skills (I)(C)(O)
Debrief and Assess Seminar (W)(C)

21. Essential Question
Washington Huskies; dirty team or the dirtiest team of all time?

22. Essential Question
To what degree should athletes and athletic companies share their political beliefs with their fans/consumers?

23. Step 2 – Reading Strategies
As you read:
Mark the text using the reading strategies provided. :

24. Step 4 – Student Questions
Work with an elbow partner to write a Level 1, 2, and 3 question.
Refer to the graphic on the next slide to help you write your questions.
Record your questions on your paper.
You will be using these questions in our Socratic Seminar in a few minutes.

25. Costa’s Levels of Thinking3
Applying
(off the page)
evaluate generalize imagine judge
predict speculate if/then hypothesize 2
Processing
(between the lines)
compare contrast classify sort
distinguish explain why infer analyze 1
Gathering
(on the page)
complete define describe identify
list observe recite select

26. Step 5 – Teaching Socratic Seminar Skills
Guidelines
Listen No one can speak while someone else is speaking.
Build Speakers must try to build on what others say, not debate their views.
Refer to the text Speakers must refer directly to the section of the text from which their ideas come rather than making general comments or observations.

27. Step 6 – Debrief and Discuss
Reflection
Allow a few minutes to review their notes and write a summary that answers the Essential Question.
This could also be done as a warm up the following day.